If anyone is equipped to write a song about a small town, it’s Tyler Braden. Born and raised in Slapout, Ala., — population 4,096 — Braden grew up in that unique atmosphere where everybody knows everyone else ... and their secrets.
So, he wrote a song about it.
"There's a line in the song that basically says, 'this simple life isn’t as easy as it sounds,' and that’s so very true,” Braden says in a recent interview with Taste of Country about his new story song "Secret," which he wrote.
"The song speaks to how, in a small town, it can be difficult," he explains. "You can't live in anonymity. You always have eyes on you, and sometimes you can’t escape the skepticism and criticism that seems to always be floating around."
This tried-and-true story is further explored within a quite symbolic music video, premiering exclusively on Taste of Country on Friday (Oct. 30).
"Dustin Haney was the director of the video, and he came up with the treatment idea simply by reading the lyrics and listening to a bare-bones acoustic version of the song, which he never had really done before," recalls Braden, who actually wrote this song in early 2016, before he even made the move to Nashville.
From the old homeless man getting stares at the local convenience store, to the girl with the new baby walking to her room at the local rundown hotel while others sit and gawk, the music video for "Secret" is a somewhat dark look at the reality of small town life for some.
But even more so, it's a look at the secrets we all hide within ourselves.
"You know this side of you and you find yourself always trying to get away from the negative side of your own persona," the singer says. “You are constantly trying to move on and live on past your mistakes."
Making the video even more intriguing is the fact that some of the same characters who appeared up in Braden's video for his first release, "Love Is a Dead End Road," end up in this video treatment, as well.
"The two main characters have a small role in the bar in the video for 'Love Is a Dead End Road,'" he shares, "So, to have them come back and play such an emotional part in this video was really cool."
And no matter how one might interpret the song and the music video for "Secret," it is certainly clear that Braden is working to bring back a storytelling nature to country music that has been missed.
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